Endings & Beginnings

Close-up of a person walking on a sunlit forest path, wearing hiking shoes and blue pants.

Our lives are shaped by a series of stories, each with its own narrative arc. We leave home and welcome people to our home; we enter our reproductive years and leave them; we end one piece of our life’s work and begin another. Endings and beginnings are bittersweet—we celebrate each with the awareness of the other. 

Latest Rituals

Ritual to let go of synagogue building and the kedushah within, so that the building ultimately can be sold, repurposed, or demolished
A decorative mezuzah is affixed to a stone wall.
“We pray that you carry us in your heart to your new home”
Couple sits on a wooden floor in a bright room with a black dog, smiling near large windows.
“Evening and morning, ritual and rite, / making order out of chaos”
Leaves transitioning from green to red arranged on wooden planks with fallen leaves scattered around.

“We gather each month to do Your holy work for our space”

Modern office conference room with large windows, chairs around a table, and a TV on the wall. Cityscape view outside.

“Whatever makes you weep / may it open your eyes”

Sunlight shining over a grassy field with trees in the background, creating a warm and serene atmosphere.

“With the start of each season/We have the chance to plant kindness and acceptance”

Sunset over ocean rocks with soft waves and distant hills, creating a serene coastal landscape.
The LIMBIC system controls the behavioral and emotional responses that we need to survive: feeding, reproduction, caring for our young, and fight or flight responses.
Purple crocuses blooming in a grassy field.

“Ending yields space for beginning”

A close-up of a Hebrew text with large, bold characters on a scroll, showcasing traditional calligraphy.

Printable mikveh guide with blessings and kavannot

Silhouette of a person standing on rocks, watching the sunset over the ocean with a sailboat in the distance.
“we are noticing / we are shivering / we are dancing!”
Two women hold a protest banner in a city street with a crowd and buildings in the background. Black and white image.

The Reconstructionist Network

Serving as central organization of the Reconstructionist movement

Training the next generation of groundbreaking rabbis

Modeling respectful conversations on pressing Jewish issues

Curating original, Jewish rituals, and convening Jewish creatives

Discover how Jewish folklore and personal memory can spark new poetry—join this creative immersion with poet Susan Comninos. 

Give voice to your own stories through the timeless power of myth and writing.

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The Reconstructionist Network